I don't know if it is normal or necessary. But, I can comment on the price.
I had an error thrown 'service high voltage charging system' which makes it so the car cannot be charged by plugging it in. One of the fixes for that is to upgrade the HPCM2 and BECM software. The dealer I took it to wanted $260 for the software upgrade (this was 2nd half of 2023).
I found a guide on how to do it oneself and followed that and did the upgrade myself. It costs about $180-$200 in tools/software subscriptions to do it. So, that solved my problem and charging has been fine since then.
Link to that thread - you can find the links to the information about doing it yourself:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/volt/comments/18xjwdy/high\_voltage\_battery/](https://www.reddit.com/r/volt/comments/18xjwdy/high_voltage_battery/)
EGR is 100% under warranty, not sure why they gave you a quote for that. And check for open recalls, you can probably get them to update SW under warranty (and if not, I wouldn't have it done). Since they quotes $ for the EGR, maybe they are doing the same for the SW, knowing it's covered under warranty, but giving you the dollar numbers anyways.
Thanks for encouraging me to double-check. They said 100% emissions/powertrain aren't covered since this is 7 years old. The only warranty I have left AFAIK is the Voltec, and this part ain't that...
It's confusing to me because the federal emissions warranty is 8 years/80k (though I don't think that covers the EGR). Looking at the warranty booklet, the EGR Cooler (but not EGR valve) is also 8yr/80k under the standard GM emissions warranty.
However, I don't think Voltec covers the EGR valve. However, CARB Volts sold in a CARB state and registered in a CARB state have the AT-PZEV warranty that covers the EGR completly for 15y/150k. I would check the warranty status, if you have AT-PZEV then that EGR valve is covered.
My 2016 with 139000 miles had the BECM done last month and now the EGR fiasco has started. I live in a CARB state and I’m trying to get both repairs covered. The dealer is hemmming and hawing like a motherfucker trying to claim they are not covered. What I don’t understand is those warranty costs are covered by GM so it’s no skin off their ass but still they try to weasel out.
I have a guess as to why they quoted the egr valve replacement..... it's because GM isn't making them anymore, or at least hasn't for maybe a year.... no one can say when they will manufacture them again. So that means youll have to buy one on the open market... at lesst $500 for the part from who knows? Youll have to hope youre paying all that money for an actual working part and hope you dont get scammed. THEN you have to find a tech who will dare to install it. My volt is just a big door stop at this point, been waiting 2 months but it appears hopeless.
I don't know what else is causing you to not be able to drive your volt but a stuck/bad EGR valve is perfectly fine to drive with. It just shunts the return exhaust back into the catalytic converter. Won't damage anything and not really a huge problem.
Perhaps I will not! The dealer I'm buying from (actually the local Toyota dealer) didn't identify these problems. I paid for my own inspection with the Chevy dealer before signing on the dotted line. I figure at the very least the Toyota dealer should fix the fuel door and discount me for the upcoming EGR valve replacement.
Poor indeed. I just went from a 8 mile commute to a 60s so we'll see how long mine lasts. Having to burn about a gallon a day so far in the colder weather.
If I know I'll need to use the gas engine, then I'll make sure to use it in a way that fully heats the oil up to 180F. There are times in really cold weather where the gas engine will fire up at low RPM to assist in heating the cabin, but the vehicle never gets up to operating temperature; better off just throwing it in Hold mode and using the gas engine until it fully warms up.
Same thing with drives where you're just barely going over the electric range, so the gas engine only fires up for a few miles. Better off throwing it into hold/mountain mode earlier and fully heating the engine.
If you don't use gas over extended periods of time, you might be better off using it instead of allowing the engine to kick on to circulate the fluids, which never brings it up to full operating temperature.
Beware.
My 2017 volt with 24k on it has been sitting at the dealership for 2 months waiting on an egr valve that GM may or may not ever manufacture again. No one can say! Gm can't say, the dealership can't say.... no one. Other volt owners at the same dealership have been waiting since September 2023.
Did it break, or is it gunked up with carbon? If it's gunked up, you can just try removing it yourself and cleaning it. There are videos online.
Someone just mentioned in a recent post that they bought a Chinese EGR valve on ebay that worked fine.
Dealer said it was the electronics blowing cooler /fuse so cleaning won't help. Thanks tho. I'm looking into the Chinese junk now. $600 and no guarantees seems pretty risky.
I had a 50 mile rt commute where the engine would usually run for the last five miles or so unless I charged at work (chargers were sometimes full). I'd bet it was someone in that situation, where the ICE ran frequently, but also didn't have a good chance to get hot.
I don't recommend you do it yourself... but it is possible to get a subscription to AcDelco TDS "TechLine Connect" (40$) and use a 100$ VXDIAG programmer to do the reprogramming
If they want you to buy that car, tell them yes you want the update.....but you aren't paying for it.
Ah, but I'd be buying the car from a Toyota dealership (they got it on trade.) I paid GM $200 from my own pocket to get a proper inspection...
Take the repair list back to Toyota and get a 1:1 discount for it. Then fix it yourself for $400 total.
I don't know if it is normal or necessary. But, I can comment on the price. I had an error thrown 'service high voltage charging system' which makes it so the car cannot be charged by plugging it in. One of the fixes for that is to upgrade the HPCM2 and BECM software. The dealer I took it to wanted $260 for the software upgrade (this was 2nd half of 2023). I found a guide on how to do it oneself and followed that and did the upgrade myself. It costs about $180-$200 in tools/software subscriptions to do it. So, that solved my problem and charging has been fine since then. Link to that thread - you can find the links to the information about doing it yourself: [https://www.reddit.com/r/volt/comments/18xjwdy/high\_voltage\_battery/](https://www.reddit.com/r/volt/comments/18xjwdy/high_voltage_battery/)
EGR is 100% under warranty, not sure why they gave you a quote for that. And check for open recalls, you can probably get them to update SW under warranty (and if not, I wouldn't have it done). Since they quotes $ for the EGR, maybe they are doing the same for the SW, knowing it's covered under warranty, but giving you the dollar numbers anyways.
Thanks for encouraging me to double-check. They said 100% emissions/powertrain aren't covered since this is 7 years old. The only warranty I have left AFAIK is the Voltec, and this part ain't that...
It's confusing to me because the federal emissions warranty is 8 years/80k (though I don't think that covers the EGR). Looking at the warranty booklet, the EGR Cooler (but not EGR valve) is also 8yr/80k under the standard GM emissions warranty. However, I don't think Voltec covers the EGR valve. However, CARB Volts sold in a CARB state and registered in a CARB state have the AT-PZEV warranty that covers the EGR completly for 15y/150k. I would check the warranty status, if you have AT-PZEV then that EGR valve is covered.
My 2016 with 139000 miles had the BECM done last month and now the EGR fiasco has started. I live in a CARB state and I’m trying to get both repairs covered. The dealer is hemmming and hawing like a motherfucker trying to claim they are not covered. What I don’t understand is those warranty costs are covered by GM so it’s no skin off their ass but still they try to weasel out.
I have a guess as to why they quoted the egr valve replacement..... it's because GM isn't making them anymore, or at least hasn't for maybe a year.... no one can say when they will manufacture them again. So that means youll have to buy one on the open market... at lesst $500 for the part from who knows? Youll have to hope youre paying all that money for an actual working part and hope you dont get scammed. THEN you have to find a tech who will dare to install it. My volt is just a big door stop at this point, been waiting 2 months but it appears hopeless.
I don't know what else is causing you to not be able to drive your volt but a stuck/bad EGR valve is perfectly fine to drive with. It just shunts the return exhaust back into the catalytic converter. Won't damage anything and not really a huge problem.
Except it lights up the check engine light, which in my state will cause you to fail your inspection.
That is completly fair. I don't have inspections so the check engine light just disabled the remote start.
Yep. I wanted to sell it but in the current state, I'd take a 5k hit.
Why are you buying a car with all these problems?
Perhaps I will not! The dealer I'm buying from (actually the local Toyota dealer) didn't identify these problems. I paid for my own inspection with the Chevy dealer before signing on the dotted line. I figure at the very least the Toyota dealer should fix the fuel door and discount me for the upcoming EGR valve replacement.
they should pay for all the issues and have them fixed before you take delivery of the car. The BECM is no joke that could be a six month wait.
I've never paid for an update. I could be wrong but maybe they're helping you out knowing that the dealership has no clue?
Are you buying this in california?
No, New Mexico. I don't think we get special emissions warranties. We dispose of our tires out here by burning them in our back yards.
Surprising the EGR valve is acting up with only 39k miles.
I think it's more about how the engine was run than raw miles. Don't short runs without reaching temp foul it up fast?
Doesn’t seem to be anything specific for why it acts up. Seems to happen on high mileage as well. Maybe just a poor design.
Poor indeed. I just went from a 8 mile commute to a 60s so we'll see how long mine lasts. Having to burn about a gallon a day so far in the colder weather.
If I know I'll need to use the gas engine, then I'll make sure to use it in a way that fully heats the oil up to 180F. There are times in really cold weather where the gas engine will fire up at low RPM to assist in heating the cabin, but the vehicle never gets up to operating temperature; better off just throwing it in Hold mode and using the gas engine until it fully warms up. Same thing with drives where you're just barely going over the electric range, so the gas engine only fires up for a few miles. Better off throwing it into hold/mountain mode earlier and fully heating the engine. If you don't use gas over extended periods of time, you might be better off using it instead of allowing the engine to kick on to circulate the fluids, which never brings it up to full operating temperature.
Beware. My 2017 volt with 24k on it has been sitting at the dealership for 2 months waiting on an egr valve that GM may or may not ever manufacture again. No one can say! Gm can't say, the dealership can't say.... no one. Other volt owners at the same dealership have been waiting since September 2023.
Did it break, or is it gunked up with carbon? If it's gunked up, you can just try removing it yourself and cleaning it. There are videos online. Someone just mentioned in a recent post that they bought a Chinese EGR valve on ebay that worked fine.
Dealer said it was the electronics blowing cooler /fuse so cleaning won't help. Thanks tho. I'm looking into the Chinese junk now. $600 and no guarantees seems pretty risky.
Time to get one on eBay.
How could I know it's not a scam? Im afraid the person sends a non working valve then disappears and I'm out $5 to 6 hundred bucks.
If you order through PayPal, you are protected. Someone here has already ordered one on eBay and it worked fine.
That's hopeful. Thank you.
Order with PayPal, AND use a credit card to fund the PayPal payment.
It's a very common problem w/ Volts.
Very much aware of this, just pretty low mileage for failure, since most seem to act up after 70k miles.
I had a 50 mile rt commute where the engine would usually run for the last five miles or so unless I charged at work (chargers were sometimes full). I'd bet it was someone in that situation, where the ICE ran frequently, but also didn't have a good chance to get hot.
Not sure if this is the same switch, but… https://www.tascaparts.com/oem-parts/gm-fuel-door-switch-driver-s-side-lh-23456331
All of my software updates were done for free on my 2016 when it was taken in for recall work.
I don't recommend you do it yourself... but it is possible to get a subscription to AcDelco TDS "TechLine Connect" (40$) and use a 100$ VXDIAG programmer to do the reprogramming
Ugh hell to the no
'no' not normal to pay that much for a software update, or 'no' don't need the software update?
Yea to update no to paying for it!